As we were thinking through how to share our story through a website we came across this verse from Jeremiah 31:21 (NLT):

“Set up road signs;put up guideposts.Mark well the pathby which you came.Come back again, my virgin Israel;return to your towns here.”

There was something about these words that rang true with many of our stories. The Ancient Hebrews walked away from their life with God, and had to find their way back following a period of exile.

In a Post-Christian culture many have been exposed to the Christian stories and claims about Jesus. Further, the history and practices of the church have been deconstructed. The culture and momentum around us have concluded that Christianity should be a relic of time. The Western world is entering, or has been in, a period of exile from life with God.

However, in spite of the cultural familiarity and deconstruction, people continue to hear God’s prompting and are beginning to follow his call “back” to him. Through re-discoverying the real, divine, historical, middle-eastern, and biblical Jesus we are recovering the spiritual and ancient knowledge of true life with God.

So it seemed good to us to place markers and guideposts for others to consider following as we walk that path with Jesus. Other churches might have doctrinal, mission, vision or value statements and those are helpful. In a Post-Christian context, we thought it also helpful to not “fence in” the path and let people join us where they resonate with these markers along the way.

We affirm the Apostle’s Creed as the basis for unity and fellowship, and wish to be patient with one another in all other matters.

Paul encouraged churches to develop relationships among the younger and older, husbands and wives, and parents and children that cultivated discipleship to Jesus. Here are some suggestions for discussing your life in Christ.

BEING

What are you hearing from the Lord about as you pursue him (Scripture, community, prayer, etc)?

What “good” things have you made “primary” by pursuing them above God and life with him?

How is Jesus becoming your central joy and love? Are you resisting him in some way?

How are you growing in being God’s beloved?

BELONGING

How are you encouraging people in your church community towards life with God and loving others?

How are you seeing your life in terms of the Story of God (Creation, Rebellion, Rescue, Restoration)?

How are your challenges in your life conflicts between kingdoms of this world and the God’s Kingdom? (Remember your “kingdom” too.)

BLESSING

How are you being stirred to redemptive love in your relationships? Consider the the contexts of Family, Neighbors Co-Workers, Enemies, etc.

Who do you know that needs God? How can you demonstrate and proclaim His love to them?

How is God’s character and wisdom compelling and helping you to spread his Kingdom in your spheres?

SPECIAL ASSISTANCEAs you meet with one another you may find that there are seasons where special assistance from the community is needed (1 Thess. 4:14-22):

If there is some ongoing laziness or resistance towards Jesus that needs to be confronted.

If there is some situational challenge or hurdle for which extra encouragement is needed.

If there is a chronic weakness, addiction, or habit that needs some gifted and ongoing support.

An ongoing theme in the New Testament and Early Church was the strengthening and establishment of believers in the faith.

Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages. – Romans 16:25 (ESV)

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. – 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 (ESV)

The Early Church saw establishment in the faith as the initial, ongoing, and active process of being encouraged in their relationship with God as his people.

As churches, we want to orient people towards this ongoing journey with God. Below are the main themes we encourage people to explore together in mutual discipleship, as a family (or group of friends), and a church family.

THE WITH-GOD LIFE

• Discipleship as Apprenticeship to Jesus | Establishing, or confirming, a solid conversion to life with God through ongoing apprenticeship to Christ. (Lk. 8:4-15 & Phil. 3:7-14) Are we loving Jesus and taking on his life?

• Church as Family | Enfolding our lives into the people of God as local families of faith. (Eph. 2:19-22) Are we growing in our identity of being loved by God as his family?

• Mission as Household | Developing our “households” as outposts of the Kingdom in search of persons of peace. (1 Pt. 2:1-12 & Lk. 10:2-6) Is God’s blessing in our life pouring over into our spheres of influence?

• True Life as Knowing God | Growing in being loved and known by God in every aspect of our thinking and living. (Jn. 17:3) How is God leading us towards true life, and away from illusions of life?

LIFE AS GOD’S PEOPLE

• Relationships as Redemptive Love | Cultivating redemptive relationships that proclaim our trust in God through love. (Jn. 13:34-35) Is there an increasingly redemptive spirit of love in all our relationships?

• Family as a Lifestyle of Teaching | Passing on the life and teachings of Christ in familial relationships and everyday life. (Deut. 6:4-9 & Eph. 6:4) Are we attentive to God and sharing his goodness with others in our everyday life?

• Vocation as Lifework | Discerning, with others and the Spirit, the good that God has planned for us to do in blessing our “neighbors” and city. (Eph. 2:10 & Jer. 29:5-7) Are we devoted to the good work of the Spirit through us in all the spheres of our life?

• Legacy as Kingdom Living | Envisioning a heritage of dependence on and collaboration with God for his eternal purposes. (Matt. 6:33) Are we investing in the growth of God’s kingdom?

We have been compelled by the narrative in the book of Acts that shows how the Holy Spirit continues the work and teaching of Jesus through ordinary people. Centuries of tradition and honor have made these stories seem almost other worldly, yet they actually depict very simple people who have “been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13) Roland Allen, a 20th century missionary, expresses this in a very compelling way in his book The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church:

“The spontaneous expansion of the Church reduced to its element is a very simple thing. It asks for no elaborate organisation, no large finances, no great numbers of paid missionaries. In its beginning it may be the work of one man and that a man neither learned in the things of this world, nor rich in the wealth of this world… What is necessary is faith. What is needed is the kind of faith which uniting a man to Christ, sets him on fire.”